Message You Can Share
It’s important to show your workers that you care about their health and safety at work and at home during times of uncertainty. Talk to your workers and ask them what they need to stay safe. Involve workers in decision-making to determine the best way to stay safe while maintaining continuity of operations.
U.S. Department of the Treasury, IRS and the U.S. Department of Labor Announce Plan to Implement Coronavirus-Related Paid Leave for Workers and Tax Credits for Small and Midsize Businesses to Swiftly Recover the Cost of Providing Coronavirus-Related Leave
March 20, 2020 - WASHINGTON, DC – Today the U.S. Treasury Department, Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Department of Labor announced that small and midsize employers can begin taking advantage of two new refundable payroll tax credits, designed to immediately and fully reimburse them, dollar-for-dollar, for the cost of providing Coronavirus-related leave to their employees. This relief to employees and small and midsize businesses is provided under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, signed by President Trump on March 18, 2020.
Read the detailed announcement
APCA General Manager Tim Wagner on COVID-19
I have been struggling with writing our own COVID-19 dissertation in light of the fact that you have likely received emails on the Corona Virus from every conceivable source including schools, restaurants, accountants, lawyers, airlines, hotels, and trade associations. They all say pretty much the same thing—wash your hands, keep your distance, etc. We have nothing to add to keep you safe as we’ve all been reading and watching the same things.
APCA Cancels Convention in the Bahamas
The APCA Board of Directors has been closely monitoring the coronavirus and has decided that the best course of action for the association and the safety of its members is to cancel the APCA Annual Convention scheduled for March 27-April 1 in the Bahamas. All room reservations at the Grand Hyatt will be cancelled.
APCA will contact all convention registrants via email to explain the next steps.
2019 OSHA Form 300A Deadline
OSHA is reminding employers to submit their 2019 OSHA Form 300A (Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses) by March 2, 2020.
Who is required to submit Form 300A?
- Establishments with 250 or more employees that are required to keep OSHA injury and illness records, and
- Establishments with 20 to 249 employees in certain industries. For the list of designated industries, visit https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/regulations/standardnumber/1904/1904.41AppA.
How to submit Form 300A: Submit injury and illness data electronically at www.osha.gov/injuryreporting.
OSHA Revises National Emphasis Program to Reduce or Eliminate Worker Exposure to Silica
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has established a revised National Emphasis Program (NEP) to identify and reduce or eliminate worker exposures to respirable crystalline silica (RCS) in general industry, maritime, and construction.
OSHA will conduct 90 days of compliance assistance for stakeholders prior to beginning programmed inspections for the NEP.
The NEP targets specific industries expected to have the highest numbers of workers exposed to silica and focuses on enforcement of the new silica standards, one for general industry and maritime (29 CFR § 1910.1053) and one for construction (29 CFR § 1926.1153). These standards became effective in June 2016, and construction employers were required to begin complying with their standard as of September 23, 2017. General industry and maritime employers were required to begin complying with their standard as of June 23, 2018.
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Almost 8 out of every 10 U.S. construction trades workers building domestic pipeline construction projects do not belong to a union, according to a Continuum Capital report.
